By Jock Mulligan
Allow me to introduce old Bricriu Nemthenga, or Bricriu Poison-Tongue. He’s a character from the Ulster Cycle of Irish mythology, particularly famous in the tale of Fled Bricrenn (Bricriu’s Feast). He was a wealthy hospitaller, a man of means who was expected to provide hospitality, but his true nature was one of utter malice and mischief. He was a master of gossip, slander, and outright lies, always seeking to sow discord and strife.
In Fled Bricrenn, Bricriu invites the Ulster champions—Cú Chulainn, Lóegaire Búadach, and Conall Cernach—to a feast. But he has a wicked plan: he promises each of them individually the “Champion’s Portion,” the finest cut of meat and the highest honour, knowing full well this will cause a furious dispute among them. He whispers insidious suggestions into their ears and those of their wives, pitting them against each other, nearly bringing the entire Ulster host to ruin through pride and petty rivalry. His disruption isn’t for any grand political aim, but purely for the enjoyment of the chaos he creates. He is, to put it simply, a disruptor for disruption’s sake, a weaver of discord who thrives on watching others tear each other apart.
The Modern Bricrius: I give you Trump and Cummings (and various other little daemons).
Now, look at the likes of Donald Trump. The man is a modern-day Bricriu, so he is? He thrives on conflict. He doesn’t just manage disputes; he manufactures them. His entire political career has been built on setting one group against another, undermining any sense of common purpose. He’ll pick fights with other nations, with his political opponents, and most tellingly, even within his own party. The Republican Party has been ripped asunder by his poisonous tongue and his absolute refusal to brook any dissent. Any challenge to his authority, any hint of another having the “Champion’s Portion” results in immediate, public condemnation and an internal war.
And then there’s wee Dominic Cummings, who explicitly sees himself as a disruptor. He’s the man who wanted to smash the old order, to break the civil service, to cut through what he saw as outdated traditions. He’s not quite the malicious gossip of Bricriu, but his methods often involve creating deliberate chaos, unsettling established norms, and driving wedges between people to achieve his aims. He wants to tear down to rebuild, but the tearing down often involves ruthless, divisive tactics. Both these men use conflict as a tool, whether for power, for personal amusement, or for a perceived political objective.
The Socialist Alternative: The Code of Fionn
If Bricriu is the warning, the poison we must avoid, then we must look for the cure in another Irish figure: Fionn mac Cumhaill, the legendary warrior and leader of the Fianna.
The Fianna was not just a band of fighters; it was a self-governing, communal military force bound by a rigorous, egalitarian code of conduct. This code, the Fianna’s Rule, offers a fantastic model for socialist organization and ethical leadership:
Honesty and Integrity: A member of the Fianna was required to be truthful and honourable, never using their strength against women, or in any way that dishonoured the collective. This directly counters Bricriu’s reliance on lies and slander.
No Wealth Requirement: To join the Fianna, a man could receive no dowry with his wife, and had to rely on his own courage and strength. This rule ensured that the collective was based on merit and loyalty, explicitly rejecting the influence of inherited wealth or class privilege.
Shared Resources: The Fianna -them boys lived communally, sharing their skills, the hunt, and the spoils of their adventures. Their loyalty was to each other and to the people of Ireland, embodying the spirit of solidarity and mutual aid.
Fionn mac Cumhaill himself governed not through fear or trickery, but through wisdom and foresight. He was the ultimate anti-Bricriu: a leader who understood that the strength of the collective was always greater than the sum of its warring parts.
What Can Socialists Learn?
This comparison gives us an irish handbook for revolutionary action.
Expose the Bricriu Tactic: We must learn from Bricriu that disruption is the language of modern politics. However, when the right-wing weaponises disruption for profit and division (like Trump and Cummings), we must immediately expose their tactics as nothing more than self-serving chaos. We must name the “poisoned tongue” and show how it is being used to distract from the true struggles of the working class.
Govern by the Rule of Fionn: We must build our movements and, eventually, our governments on the principles of the Fianna. Our strength must come from a shared code that prioritizes integrity, equality, and collective well-being over individual ego or financial gain. When we talk about democratic institutions, we must ensure they operate with the fairness and communal spirit of Fionn’s Fianna, not the self-interest of Bricriu’s court.
Disrupt with Solidarity: Our disruption is not for chaos; it’s for rebalancing power. We disrupt exploitative labour practices with strikes and unionisation. We disrupt economic inequality by advocating for redistribution of wealth. We use the force of solidarity to challenge the individualistic, winner-take-all mentality peddled by the modern Bricrius. We show that true power and true honour come from the collective, loyal code of the Fianna, not from the petty rivalry for the “Champion’s Portion.”
We learn that leadership is a choice: to be the Poisoned Tongue that fractures the community for a moment of ego, or to be the Wise Leader who binds the collective with an unshakeable code of equality and mutual aid. The socialist path must always choose the latter.
Equality, like Fionn, is not dead, but is instead its sleeping warriors, (like the Fianna) and will awake to defend freedom, but for fuck sake awaken now- Fionn can wait until his horn is sounded three times – but we need to get out of bed and every day, do something that helps destroy the system that has pulled us down the road of fascism.
